1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device designed for the purpose of preventing or reducing night clenching and grinding of the teeth or snoring.
2. Description of the Related Art
Several methods have been experimented with to impede snoring and other unarticulated sounds unconsciously uttered during one's sleep. The essential feature of these methods is to provide an unobstructed air passage between the tongue (root of the tongue) and the palate (especially the soft part of it) by means of a mechanism preventing the tongue and palate from getting shut up against each other. Devices of such kind have been described in the patent specifications EP A 0182387, DE 407949 and U.S. Pat. No. 3132647. From these methods the one mentioned first causes the least discomfort to the patient, but it is rather complicated. According to this method an acrylate resin bar is attached to both sides of the upper rear molars through an acrylate resin spacer in the rear region of the hard palate. This arrangement is, to some extent, capable of preventing snoring, but its use is inconvenient, and it is rather complicated and costly to prepare. Furthermore, it is unsuitable for reducing or preventing the night grinding and excessive clenching of the teeth.